


The Loners' Bench

by romashka



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - Middle School, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-16
Updated: 2017-01-16
Packaged: 2018-09-17 23:56:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 618
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9352253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/romashka/pseuds/romashka
Summary: School dances never live up to anyone's expectations, but you can still have fun. Probably.





	

Nepeta was not very good at applying mascara yet, but she tried her best to steady her hand. She wanted to be pretty. Or, rather, she was pretty, she knew that, but she wanted it to be obvious. She was wearing green eyeshadow too, and lip gloss, and blush in slightly the wrong place. She had a little braid on one side of her hair, and she wore a sequined dress that had been Meulin’s. Overall, it was a strong look. She was known for roughhousing and wasn’t used to taking such care over her appearance, but she decided that she looked stunning, and surely Karkat would think so too. 

At around the same time, in slightly more ornate surroundings, Eridan too was preparing for the dance. He had put on dark lipstick, and an amount of hair gel that most would describe as excessive and Cronus would describe as adequate. He wore a black shirt buttoned all the way up and striped skinny jeans. This, too, was a strong look. If he got to speak to Fef – and he would – surely he’d be all set. All set for what, he wasn’t exactly sure, but he expected something good would happen.

Unfortunately, as anyone who’s been that age knows, nobody attending a middle school dance has ever accomplished what they set out to. So it was that they both found themselves on the edge. The loners’ bench was a regular fixture at these events, and sitting on it during the slower songs had become almost a mark of pride for those who had no date, either because they’d been rejected or because they’d never had the courage to ask in the first place. 

Nepeta was swinging her feet, scuffing her sneakers on the floor. She was smiling a little, swaying a little, because even in the face of rejection she thought she ought to remain cheerful. Eridan had no such persuasions, and ever since emerging from the hallway he appeared to have been on the verge of tears. Nepeta didn’t know him all that well, but she didn’t want him to be sad. She scooched towards him cautiously and a concerned chirp escaped her throat. He turned to look at her with a somewhat affronted expression, but said nothing, and did not move away. She moved closer and slowly laid her head on his shoulder, still waiting for a reaction. He tensed. She craned her neck to make deliberate eye contact, then, smiling, licked his cheek.

He drew a sharp breath. “Nep.”

Nepeta was glad to have got a reaction from him at last. She made her eyes wide. “Yeah?”

“What was that?”

“You’re sad, aren’t you? I’m being friendly, like what my lusus does when I’m sad.”

Eridan wanted to be cold, to glare, to tell her to get lost, but somehow when he looked at that face he couldn’t quite manage it. His expression wavered. “You have a moirail, don’t you?” he said. “So you’re not alone, right? You should go and be with him.”

“I’m not doing that now. Look at him!”

Eridan followed Nepeta’s gaze and saw Equius standing in the middle of the floor, not dancing, looking incredibly uncomfortable while silently watching an apparently oblivious Karkat. Nepeta quickly looked away again, in case Karkat saw her.

After a few moments, Nepeta braced herself and asked Eridan something the upfrontness of which was typical for someone their age, but especially for her. 

“Alright,” he replied.

They both stood up then, because the loners’ bench didn’t seem like the right place for them anymore, and danced. They couldn’t dance, and they were probably going to break up in a week, but it didn’t really matter.

**Author's Note:**

> I've had this half-written for ages and I thought I might as well finish and share it ~ (also, wow, half of it is just describing their outfits)


End file.
